


How To Be Meta

by Anonymous



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Aromantic Asexual Character, Codependency, Dimension Travel, Gen, Misgendering, Nonbinary Character, Reincarnation, most of it is accidental
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-02-19
Packaged: 2019-10-17 10:43:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17558867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Sawada Tsunayoshi wasn't supposed to be real. He was an anime character, forever the screeching protagonist of a popular series that Masami was once obsessed it. But they couldn't deny what was in front of them. Their past life was one large void. Their name, their home, their death was all unknown to them. All they remembered was Tsuna. Tsuna, and his life. Tsuna, and the fact that he had always deserved better.Choosing to derail canon was an easy choice.(in most timelines,abe masamidid not exist. masami could not choose to forget, no matter how they wished. and they were not the only one)





	How To Be Meta

Abe Masami hadn’t realized where they found themself until their parents told them they were moving to _Namimori_. Namimori, Japan wasn't real. It  _couldn’t_ be, because they looked it up a lifetime ago and found that it didn't exist and that was that. Namimori was a fictional town created for the sake of a fictional story. There was no way they were going where they  _thought_ they were going. They had had their suspicions, sure, but they thought something went wonky in the reincarnation machine that meant they were able to keep their memories—they didn’t think they had been reborn into the fucking _Reborn_ anime!

Immediately and before their move, they frantically began writing everything they knew about the anime and the manga into one of their journals. The journal was supposed to be used for school, but instead, they were planning on stuffing it in the back of their closet to pretend they lost it once they got to the new house. On the off-chance it was found, they wrote in English. They didn’t remember a lot about who they used to be, but English still came easier to them than Japanese, and their parents probably wouldn’t understand it very well.

It was pure luck that they moved in next to the Sawada house. Or maybe it wasn’t luck at all, and it was whatever higher being that put them into that universe being a little shit. They didn’t know, but they would use it to their advantage. Their mother was a friendly person, too, which meant the first thing she did was bake a pie and greet their neighbors. Masami jumped at the chance to come along.

It was jarring, seeing a young Sawada Tsunayoshi looking so _real_. The boy had been immortalized as the fourteen year old 2D character he was always supposed to be, and seeing him now made things a bit different. They were tempted to run their hands through his hair to see if it was as fluffy as it was always described.

Predictably, Sawada Nana invited them and Mom inside with a happy grin. Masami didn't know what to think of her. She was always portrayed as motherly, but her actions canonically left much to be desired. They didn't know what she would be like now that they would have to actually interact with her, like, in real time. They pushed their thoughts to the back of their mind, focusing instead on the more important person.

“Hi, I’m Abe Masami,” they said, smiling at Tsuna. He looked terribly shy. Masami hoped they looked friendly enough. “What’s your name?”

“Sawada Tsunayoshi,” Tsuna answered quietly and peered up at them with large doe eyes. Masami wanted to coo. They always knew Tsuna was cute, but now that he was in front of them, it became even more obvious. “Call me Tsuna,” he added.

“It’s nice to meet you, Tsuna-kun. Do you want to play?” Oh God, what did children do? Masami could barely remember their past life, much less what they did as a child. Now, in their second life as an eight year old, they spent most of their time reading and playing video games, and unbeknownst to their parents, they hardly spent their time reading "kiddie" books. They didn’t think to care about acting like a kid before.

Tsuna’s eyes lit up and he smiled. “Y-yeah! Let’s play in the backyard! Um, it’s this way.” He turned and immediately tripped, sprawling all over the wooden floor. Sawada-san and Mom looked in their direction, and Sawada-san sighed, shaking her head. Masami was too far away to hear what she said, but they didn’t think they wanted to hear it.

“Are you okay?” they asked, leaning down to help Tsuna up. They wondered if this was the verse where Tsuna was Sealed, and if so, was there was a way for them to help? If it was the Seal, maybe they could deal with the clumsiness early and help Tsuna be a little more prepared for what was to come.

Tsuna sniffled and accepted the helping hand. “Yes, I’m okay…” he said. He looked to the ground, resolutely refusing to look at them. Masami frowned. That wouldn’t do.

“Come on, show me to the backyard,” they said. Tsuna glanced up at them, appearing shocked, but then nodded quickly and led them to the back.

They played catch for a long time. Tsuna taught Masami how to climb the tree in the backyard. He tripped a lot, but they were always sure to catch him and smile, when it became obvious he was waiting for ridicule. Masami had always liked Tsuna’s character in canon. They spent a lot of time thinking about how his past must have affected him, and seeing this boy—who would later grow up to be one of the most powerful teenagers in the world—flinch and curl into himself brought forth an irrational type of anger. Tsuna may have been a character to them, but he was real now, which made things all the more worse.

It was sad having to leave hours later. Masami hadn’t bothered making friends with a lot of the other kids in their hometown, too busy returning to old habits of reading books and scouring the internet and blazing through homework with practiced ease, but this was _Tsuna_ and they hadn’t even thought of being a kid again until now. It was… surprisingly nice being able to play the part again. They forgot what it was like to just play catch and be childish.

“Bye-bye Tsuna,” Masami said as they and their mother prepared to leave. After a moment’s hesitation, they wrapped Tsuna in a small hug. The way Tsuna stiffened, and then melted made them grit their teeth. “Hey, how about I come visit again tomorrow? I don’t start school until the day after!” They beamed at him as they pulled away. Tsuna’s eyes were wide.

“U-um, okay,” he stammered. “Sure.” Then he smiled, shakily but present and genuine.

“Cool! I’ll see you tomorrow!” Masami waved as they left, holding on to their mom’s hand. She was oddly silent, a complicated look washing over her face as they returned home.

Once they were inside, Mom said, “Honey, you shouldn’t hug other boys like that.”

They fought not to make a face. Their body was male this time around, but in this life and the last one, they had never identified as either a girl or a boy. It was lucky that the Japanese language didn’t exactly have pronouns.

“Why not?” they asked, even though they knew the answer.

“It’s just… not something that’s done. Okay?” She smiled like that was all the answer they needed. They bit back many colorful words and nodded. Mom looked satisfied. Masami wasn’t.

**xxx**

They were trying to sleep when they realized what being in Namimori meant.

_Flames_.

This was a mafia world, which meant Flames, which meant they needed to be able to keep up with Tsuna and his Guardians in a few years.

Masami sat up, mind racing. What kind of Flames did they have? How did they awaken them? Assumedly, they would have to be close to death, but they didn’t want to try to kill themself over Flames. If they had Flames, would they accidentally give themself a role as Tsuna’s Guardian and steal the position from the real Guardian? No, no, that wouldn’t do at all.

Speaking of the Guardians, what were they to do about Mukuro, Chrome, and Gokudera? And what about Lambo, whenever he’s born? Could they keep Yamamoto from trying to kill himself if they became friends with him early on?

Masami threw their blanket to the side and rushed to the closet, pulling out their journal specifically for events that would happen. Chewing on their bottom lip, they began to write the canon pasts of the Guardians.

So much to do, and so little time.

They ended up having an all-nighter.

**xxx**

As promised, they went to the Sawada house and pretended not to see the bewildered expression on Tsuna’s face when he saw them at his doorstep. They left after having dinner with Tsuna and Sawada-san and they spent the rest of the day trying to separate their thoughts into Flames and Guardians.

And then it was Monday and they couldn’t afford to think when they had school. They were tempted to skip, but their teacher would definitely call their parents and _Tsuna_ went to the same school, which meant of course they had to stay with him.

They knocked on Tsuna’s door in the morning instead of heading straight for school. Sawada-san was shocked to see them, but happy to let them in. “Oh, I’m so glad my son has made a friend!” she chittered, setting aside water for them. “He’s so bad at talking to people you know? And I keep telling him, ‘Tsu-kun, just walk up and say hi’ but he never does! It’s so disappointing. I don’t know what to do with him.” She sighed, hand pressed to her cheek. They sipped their water to keep from making any comments.

Tsuna’s arrival was punctuated by a systematic thumping that indicated he had fallen down the stairs. Masami jumped. They stood to check on him, but Sawada-san said, “Again? Don’t worry about him, Masami-kun, that happens every morning.” They couldn’t help sending her a withering look that she didn’t notice before hurrying to Tsuna’s side.

“Are you okay, Tsuna?” they asked, holding out a hand.

“A-Abe-kun!” Tsuna stared up at them and didn’t take their hand. They waved it. He snapped out of it and took the offered hand. “Wh-um, what are you doing here, Abe-kun?”

“Maa, Tsuna, you don’t have to call me that. Just call me Masami, no -kun or anything,” they said. Honorifics were weird for them.

“I-is that okay?”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’m here to walk to school together. Is that okay?” Masami smiled as openly as they could.

“Y-yes! I-I-I would like that very much!” Tsuna agreed, nodding vigorously.

“Then how about you eat first? But hurry, or we’ll be late.”

“Right! Okay!” He hurried to the dining room, where a plate was waiting for him. Masami followed and sat beside him, keeping a careful eye on the clock. They still had some time before they really needed to move. They didn’t know if Hibari was already on his disciplinary schtick, and they didn’t want to find out.

Tsuna shoveled food into his mouth at lightning speed. Masami was surprised at the rate he finished and then Tsuna was already moving to get his shoes on. Masami was slower, making sure to bow their head to Sawada-san and say, “Thank you for having me, Sawada-san.”

“No need to thank me! As I said, my son needs some friends!” She waved a hand and laughed. “Call me Mama, please.” Masami smiled tightly and didn’t respond to the request. They went to the front room and slipped on their shoes, following Tsuna out the door.

“Eager, aren’t you?” they asked as they fell into step with him.

“I’ve never, uh, walked with a friend before,” Tsuna admitted, kicking his feet. “Why did you wanna walk with me? I’m just, uh, Dame-Tsuna, you know?”

Masami frowned. They were familiar with the nickname, of course, but it was the first time hearing it and not reading it. They had never really thought about what it meant. It rubbed them wrong. “Who calls you that? You’re not useless. You’re just a little clumsy, that’s all.”

“Everyone says it, so it’s gotta be true. Even the teachers,” he mumbled. “I’m not good at learning either and I’m too clumsy to be good at sports. I can’t do anything right.”

“No one’s bad at everything. Maybe you just need a different kind of help than what school offers. Doesn’t mean you’re useless.” They wondered if they sounded too old. There was no way an eight year old actually knew all this stuff, but they felt they could be excused. There weren’t any adults around and Tsuna wasn’t about to notice. And anway, he needed support, not a child who wouldn’t know how to be supportive.

“Y-you think so?” Tsuna asked, peering up at them.

“Absolutely.” Masami grinned and ruffled his hair. It really was as soft and fluffy as it looked.

**xxx**

Their teacher’s name was Ishikawa-sensei. She was a tall woman with glasses, but she wasn’t all that intimidating. She smiled at them and said her basic greetings that they returned and then said to wait outside until she called them in.

Being inside an anime was weird, and it was only as they were walking into the classroom that they realized this. Masami’s eyes immediately caught on to Sasagawa Ryouhei and Hibari Kyouya—wasn’t Hibari supposed to be a year older?—but everyone else in the classroom seemed… bland. Like they all had too-similar faces or no faces at all.

Masami blinked twice. Suddenly, their classmates looked distinct again. Ryouhei and Hibari were the ones his eyes immediately went to, but they didn’t stand out as much. (Well, Hibari didn’t. Ryouhei was the only one in the class with white hair, so there was nothing to be done about that)

“Hello, my name is Abe Masami,” they said, bowing to the class. “Please take care of me.”

“Alright then, Abe-kun, why don’t you sit…” Ishikawa-sensei scanned the room. The only empty seats were next to Ryouhei, who happened to be the only one sitting next to Hibari. Somehow, Masami wasn’t surprised. “Sit next Sasagawa-kun. Sasagawa-kun?”

Ryouhei grinned and waved a hand eagerly. “EXTREME!” he shouted.

“Sasagawa-kun,” Ishikawa said disapprovingly.

“Sorry, Ishikawa-sensei!” His grin took on a sheepish tone. Masami didn’t mind. This definitely made things convenient.

They took their seat next to Ryouhei, ignoring the pitying looks their classmates gave them. Ryouhei and Hibari were _great_ once you got past their extremities.

(Masami snorted into their hand, garnering a weird look)

“I’m sure you’d all like to ask Abe-kun some questions, but please wait until lunch break,” Ishikawa-sensei said. A few groans echoed across the room that she ignored and she went on to begin the lesson.

Masami had never been a new kid in the past, so they were honestly surprised when their classmates surrounded them the moment they broke for lunch. They were overwhelmed by questions that they couldn’t make any sense of, and they were only stopped when Hibari slammed a hand on his own desk and growled, “Stop _crowding_ , herbivores.” Masami bit back a fond smile. That was a little more intimidating than they thought it would be, but it was also cute. And familiar, which took the edge off.

Immediately, the crowd dispersed. Ryouhei was still sat in his seat, so Masami leaned over to look at Hibari and said, “Thank you for that.”

“I didn’t do it for _you_ , herbivore. They were crowding,” Hibari sniffed.

“Don’t mind Hibari! He’s always extreme like that!” Ryouhei laughed and grinned at them. “I’m Sasagawa Ryouhei! Do you want to join my extreme boxing club?”

“You don’t have a boxing club, Sasagawa!” someone called.

“I WILL MAKE ONE!” Ryouhei declared, holding a fist in the air. Masami winced at the volume, but no one else so much as flinched. Ryouhei looked back at them, an eager look on his face. “So? How about it, Abe?”

“Uh, well…” It was a good thing they had thought a lot about what to do with the Guardians, or else they would have no idea how to proceed. “I don’t know anything about boxing, but I’d be happy to learn,” they offered.

Ryouhei’s grin turned impossibly wider. “YOSH!” he exclaimed. “I can begin teaching you right now! Let’s go!”

“Right now?” Masami’s eyes widened. They glanced to the doorway of the classroom and paused as they saw Tsuna hovering just outside. “Uh, actually, I promised a friend of mine that I would eat lunch with him. He’s right outside, but I can probably hang out after school.” Their parents would throw a fit, but knowing them, they would just be happy their “son” made a friend that they liked enough to go somewhere with after school.

“Keeping to your promises is extremely important!” Ryouhei nodded firmly. “Alright, after school!”

Masami smiled and walked out of the classroom to lead Tsuna away. “Sorry I couldn’t stop by your classroom,” they said. “I got ambushed by my classmates. You found your way fine?”

Tsuna looked up at them, then slowly shook their head. “Um, n-not really… I had to ask an upperclassman for help…”

“Well, that’s okay. Where do you want to eat lunch?”

“The… um, maybe the courtyard?” Tsuna looked utterly lost, which Masami was coming to find was pretty common for seven year old Tsuna.

“Courtyard it is. Oh, yeah, Tsuna, how do you feel about learning how to box?”

Tsuna stared up at them, for the first time looking anything other than shocked or hesitantly happy. Masami wasn’t sure if looking scared was any better though. “Learning to _what_?”

**xxx**

They dragged Tsuna to Ryouhei’s boxing lessons anyway, because it was important that he gathered as many Guardians as he could before Reborn came in a few years. Also, they still had no idea how to activate their Flames, but maybe physically training would help. They were pretty sure Ryouhei had been subconsciously using his Flames before Reborn ever came, so it could be helpful.

“I don’t mind someone else joining! The more the merrier!” Ryouhei exclaimed, grinning down at Tsuna. “An extreme hello to you! Are you Abe’s little brother?”

Masami had black hair and brown eyes and their skin was a shade or two darker. Tsuna had brown hair and amber eyes and was almost worryingly pale. Masami was at a loss of how they could be mistaken for siblings, but then again, no one questioned Lambo, I-Pin, and Fuuta as far as they knew, so maybe this was just a Namimori thing.

“Um, no,” Tsuna said shyly, shrinking back to hide behind Masami. “I’m, um, Sawada Tsunayoshi. Please call me Tsuna. It’s n-nice to meet you.”

“You as well, Sawada! Do you know anything about boxing?”

“I asked him to come,” Masami interjected, seeing Tsuna beginning to look overwhelmed. Maybe introducing him to his most _extreme_ Guardian first was a bad idea after all. Oh well, no going back now. “He’s pretty clumsy, but I thought if he learned to box, he could fix that a little bit.”

“I can do my best, to the extreme!” Ryouhei pumped his fists. “Yosh! Let’s start with some extreme warm-ups!”

Masami blinked at him, then at their surroundings. “Right now?”

Ryouhei paused.

“Right!” he exclaimed. “We’ll go to my house! After my sister finds us!” Wasn’t Kyouko supposed to be in the same class as Tsuna? Or was that just a headcanon? Did they read too much fanfiction in their past life?

“Onii-chan!”

Speak of the devil. Was this the power of fiction at work?

“Kyouko! Meet my new friend and his little friend! I’m teaching them how to box!”

“I-I’m not little!” Tsuna exclaimed.

“Yes you are, Tsuna,” Masami said, resting a hand on his head. For some reason, they felt incredible joy at saying that.

Sasagawa Kyouko stopped in front of them with a curious smile. “Hello. Sawada-kun, right?” she said to Tsuna, who squeaked and turned red. She didn’t seem to notice, or maybe she was ignoring it, and she looked at Masami. “I’m Sasagawa Kyouko. Who are you? Sawada-kun’s brother?”

“Why do you both think we’re brothers?” Tsuna moaned. Masami twitched. The topic of their gender wouldn't be easy to explain, but... they  _really_ did not want to be considered a "boy" for the rest of their life.

“No, I’m new to Namimori,” they said. “I’m Abe Masami. Please call me Masami.”

“Sure, Masami-senpai!” Kyouko agreed. “If you’ll call me Kyouko! You can too, Sawada-kun.”

“I’d… like it if you called me Tsuna,” Tsuna said.

Kyouko nodded cheerily. “Okay! So you two are Onii-chan’s friends?”

“Well, maybe. We just met today,” Masami answered.

“They’re coming over so I can teach them how to extremely box!” Ryouhei declared.

“What?” Kyouko asked, looking at Masami and Tsuna with concern. “Is it okay for you two to come over on such short notice?”

“My parents don’t mind,” Masami said. “I can call them from your house if that makes you feel better.”

“Mom, um, I don’t think she’ll really notice…” Tsuna muttered, his voice becoming almost silent by the end of his sentence. Masami frowned and rubbed a hand over his hair in the best comforting gesture they could do. Kyouko frowned too and when they looked closely, Masami saw Ryouhei’s eyes narrow.

“Well, okay then. In that case, let’s get going,” Kyouko agreed. Ryouhei cheered, and like that, they began heading off to the Sasagawa house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tbh i only have a vague idea of what meta is  
> uhhh i hope this was good??


End file.
